Remote Opportunity: Join UNOPS Youth Engagement Platform – Shape the Future of Sustainable Development (12 Months)
The UNOPS Youth Engagement Platform (YEP) offers a unique, high-profile opportunity for emerging changemakers to advise UNOPS leadership and contribute youth-informed perspectives to strategic decision-making.
This 12-month home-based internship allows you to influence policies, initiatives, and projects across the UNOPS organization while collaborating with peers from around the world.
UNOPS, the United Nations Office for Project Services, delivers infrastructure, procurement, project management, and operational solutions for sustainable development globally.
The Youth Engagement Platform, under the motto “30 below 30, to get 2030”, was established by the UNOPS Executive Director to bring the voices, creativity, and lived experiences of young people directly into high-level decision-making.
This is more than an internship: it is a platform for innovation, policy influence, and thought leadership. While participation is on a pro-bono basis, it offers unparalleled exposure to the UN system, professional development, and the chance to represent youth perspectives in internal and external forums. Compensation is provided solely for travel undertaken on behalf of UNOPS.
Role Purpose
As a YEP member, you will serve as a youth advisor to UNOPS leadership, bringing fresh ideas, lived experience, and youth-informed insights to the organization’s work. Your contributions will help UNOPS better respond to emerging challenges affecting young people, ensure the design of youth-inclusive programs, and enhance the organization’s role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Key responsibilities include:
- Generating Youth-Led Insights on SDG and Development Trends
- Identify emerging risks, opportunities, and trends affecting young people in UNOPS’ operational areas (infrastructure, procurement, climate, fragility, project management, etc.).
- Provide rapid feedback on global and regional developments from a youth lens to inform strategies, policies, and programming.
- Contribute youth perspectives to internal analyses, foresight exercises, and strategy reviews.
- Providing Strategic Advisory Input
- Review and advise on UNOPS frameworks, policies, and initiatives with a youth, diversity, equity, and inclusion lens.
- Participate in consultations with UNOPS leadership and key units, offering practical, youth-informed recommendations.
- Co-create proposals that strengthen the relevance, legitimacy, and impact of UNOPS’ work for and with young people.
- Advancing Youth Representation and Thought Leadership
- Represent youth perspectives in internal and selected external forums and international events.
- Contribute to speaking points, advocacy messages, and panel interventions that highlight youth priorities.
- Support UNOPS participation in system-wide youth initiatives in line with the UN Youth Strategy and Youth2030.
- Strengthening Youth-Inclusive Operational Approaches
- Provide feedback to enhance youth participation and benefit-sharing in UNOPS projects.
- Identify lessons and good practices from youth-engaging initiatives and feed them into operational guidance and standards.
- Advise on safe, ethical, and meaningful engagement of young people across UNOPS programs.
Who Should Apply?
The YEP is seeking 15 internal UNOPS talents and 15 external youth visionaries, aged 17–29, who demonstrate:
- Passion for sustainable development and the SDGs.
- Youth leadership or active engagement in community, student, or advocacy initiatives.
- Experience representing youth perspectives in local, national, regional, or international settings.
- Ability to collaborate across diverse groups and contribute meaningfully to decision-making platforms.
- Exposure to SDG-related issues or international development through volunteering, activism, coursework, or networks.
Desired: Experience with the UN system, policy discussions, youth advocacy, or global development is a plus. Fluency in English is required; proficiency in Spanish or French is desirable.
Why Join?
- Influence: Shape UNOPS’ policies and strategies from a youth perspective.
- Visibility: Represent young people in internal UN decision-making and international events.
- Development: Gain hands-on experience in policy analysis, public speaking, stakeholder management, and advocacy.
- Networking: Collaborate with peers and global experts in sustainable development and the UN system.
- Impact: Contribute directly to advancing youth-inclusive approaches in global development and progress toward the 2030 Agenda.
How to Apply
Applicants must submit a single PDF document containing:
- Resume/CV describing relevant experience and qualifications.
- Description of a project or initiative demonstrating your commitment to sustainable development (max. 2000 characters).
- Open-source link to a 90-second video explaining your passion for sustainable development and value to the YEP.
Deadline: 31 December 2025 (midnight, Copenhagen time)
UNOPS is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and encourages applications from underrepresented and marginalized communities.
This is a rare opportunity for young changemakers to bring youth perspectives to the heart of global decision-making, helping shape a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient world.
APPLY FOR THIS INTERNSHIP
